“Good is the enemy of great.”
This quote from French writer, historian and philosopher Voltaire helps sum up the point of Jim Collins’ 2001 book, “Good to Great: Why Some Companies Make The Leap … And Others Don’t.”
In the book, Collins — an influential business management consultant — identifies and evaluates the factors and variables that allow a small fraction of companies to make the transition from merely good to truly great. He uses metrics like financial performance to find companies that exceed market averages, then presents case studies of a handful of these companies that fit the predetermined criteria for greatness.
The book is very popular and is great motivation for businesses looking to reach that next level of growth. That’s why we chose “good to great” as as the theme for our annual staff retreat.
Our Annual Tradition
During HighGrove Partners’ staff retreat, which is held in August each year, roughly 40 of our employees, including all operations managers, client relations managers, project managers, designers, senior management and support staff, get together to discuss how to improve the company.
A few field employees are also invited to join the group to gain exposure into team building and strategic planning.
Building Better Relationships
The HighGrove Partners retreat was held at the Brasstown Valley Resort, a couple of hours from our offices. We kicked things off with a presentation by landscape industry consultant Marty Grunder, who talked about the overall messages in “Good To Great.” CEO Jim McCutcheon then reinforced the message, presenting a brief history of the company and how far it’s come.
These presentations set the tone for the meeting. Then, each participant played a role in sharing ideas during the meeting. Their takeaway from the meeting was going back into their roles and finding additional ways to help solidify, strengthen and improve upon their relationships with clients as well as fellow employees.
Each employee interacts with different people — but each of those relationships eventually leads to the customer. So, in some form or fashion, each person’s work helps build better client relationships. This became a key focus of improvement for HighGrove.
Work Hard, Play Hard
There’s also some room for fun during the staff retreat. New retreat attendees — “the rookies” — must perform a song on the last day of the event where they make up their own words. This becomes a great team building activity for meeting rookies.
Committed To Greatness
In each dramatic, good-to-great corporate transformation Collins outlines in his book, there is no miracle moment. Instead, each company has a committed-to-excellence process that keeps it and its people on track for the long-term. No quick fixes got them where they are. Instead, they embrace steadfast discipline.
That’s why these annual retreats focused on improving our operations continue to remain popular for the team, so they can continue on their journey to greatness.
Contact Highgrove Partners at (678) 298-0550 or use the contact form to the right to schedule a free consultation
Last modified: June 2, 2021
